Spring Cleaning in the Garden

Spring has sprung. In California this season normally signals warmer temperatures, strong breezes and the dwindling of our rainy season. For Central Coasters though, the weather still carries remnants of winter chill and dampness.

So what’s a gardener to do, you ask? We suggest you slog through messy garden beds and soggy lawns to assess your landscape’s condition. If you’re like most of us, general garden clean up is in order. Yeah, yeah, we know…the maintenance end of gardening holds little magic for most of us, yet it is crucial to the success of spring and summer planting.

Some garden jobs best done in March and April:

- Lawn top-dressing

- Plant bare-root (packaged) perennials

- Tend flowering shrubs – clean up spent blossoms, feed with acid fertilizer

- Sow annuals – cosmos, nasturtiums, sunflowers and zinnias

- Sow: carrots, spinach and chard

- In April – set out transplants of tomato, peppers and squash

- Sow: beans, corn and squash

- Water

Interestingly enough, the rainy weather helps indentify low spots that might hamper drainage. Make note of these areas, using soil amended with compost to fill them in. Since it’s too early to do much planting, you’ll want to focus on prepping soil for future plantings; both flower and vegetable. In addition, you may amend surrounding soil as well as soil in planting beds you’ve designated for spring and summer vegetables.

Victory Garden author James Crockett calls compost “the caviar of organic materials” for its ability to retain moisture and provide the necessary 5% Soil Organic Matter to soil. Harvest Blend Compost is a premium compost; wonderful for use as lawn top-dressing, soil amendment, tree and shrub backfill mix and in flower and vegetable gardens. Click here to locate a Harvest Blend Compost dealer near you.

To amend soil with compost: you will first need to loosen the soil. If the soil is too wet from too much rain, let the soil dry for a few days as wet, heavy soils are difficult to work. For dry soil or new garden plots that have not been worked before, a thorough watering a few days ahead of time will make your job easier. Using a rototiller for large areas or a fork and spade for existing beds, break up the soil to a depth of approximately six to twelve inches (the lower range is appropriate for existing beds).

Spread compost evenly over soil. Blend compost into the soil using a gardening fork or your rototiller (if you don‘t own a rototiller, they’re often available through equipment rental locations). After you have thoroughly worked the materials into the garden soil, level the area with a rake.

Your soil is now properly replenished for the upcoming planting season. Over the next few months, the organic amendments you have added will continue to break down, building healthy soil for a plentiful gardening season ahead; providing a slow-release of nutrients that will benefit growing plants. Remember, these nutrients won’t last forever and should be replenished periodically throughout the year.

Many organics naturally occurring in your yard are ideal for building up your garden soil. A simple lawn mowing provides one of the best resources for organic garden soil improvement. Mow your lawn and bag or rake the shredded leaves and grass clippings to work into your soil. Not only will the grass and leaf bits break down to provide essential soil nutrients, but they will work to loosen and aerate the soil as well, increasing root health during the next spring and summer growing season. This will aid in soil drainage, too.

Before you know it, we’ll be experiencing warm evenings and even warmer days; perfect for planting all the tasty vegetables we’ll be enjoying throughout summer and fall. Naturally!

For more info on compost use and benefits, visit http://www.gotcompost.com/

Got Compost: Topp Dress your Lawn. Naturally!

Got Compost: Topp Dress your Lawn. Naturally!

Topp Dress your Lawn. Naturally!

Got Compost: February Gardening Tips

Got Compost: February Gardening Tips: The middle of February? Already?! We’re still feeling the sting of winter weather, maybe even using it as an excuse not to work in the garde...

February Gardening Tips

The middle of February? Already?! We’re still feeling the sting of winter weather, maybe even using it as an excuse not to work in the garden. If you’re a dedicated gardener, you haven’t been wasting these precious weeks. And if you have neglected your planting beds, you definitely have time to prepare for spring.

Take a look at your trees, both shade and deciduous fruit trees. How about roses? These plants could undoubtedly use some help – a good pruning should do the trick. If you’re not familiar with correct pruning techniques it’s well worth the investment to hire a tree specialist. Hacking away at any old branch can spell trouble for these weather worn plants, possibly damaging future growth.

And did you know that February is bareroot season. Fruit trees, berries and roses are available for planting at a lower cost now than in the spring, when we find them in containers.  Be sure to dig a hole larger than the root spread of the tree, mixing in plenty of Harvest Blend Compost with the dirt, to use as backfill when planting. Click here for tips on using compost to plant and care for trees and shrubs.

Are you planning for your vegetable garden? You can start beets, lettuce and spinach indoors to plant out later when the weather warms a little. If you don’t have the latest seed catalogs lying around the house, click here, scroll down the page and you'll find links to some of our favorite suppliers.

Warm days/cold nights.  While February may see some warm days, nights will still be cold and there’s even danger of frost, so be prepared to protect tender plants. If you are unable to bring the plants indoors, try to group them together in a protected location up against the home or even under the eaves or a carport and cover them with a light blanket, sheets, tablecloth, polypropylene material or custom plant blankets or other cloth for the night. The south and west sides of the home are normally the warmest. If the container is too big to move, you can mulch around the container or wrap the base with a blanket or other cloth.

Covering a plant with cloth is one of the most effective ways of protecting a plant during extremely cold weather. Make sure the cover extends all the way to the ground so that it can trap in the heat. Plants do not produce heat but the soil does. Rocks and clothespins are effective ways to help keep the cover on and better insulate the plant from the elements. Be sure to remove the covers daily when the temps rise since the added weight of a wet cloth can break delicate branches. Wood stakes or tomato cages around the plant can keep the covering up and off the leaves. Small plants can also be covered with cardboard boxes placed upside down over the plant.

Don’t use plastic materials to cover your plants. Plastic can burn the leaves it touches on a cold night and it also cuts off air to the plant. In addition it acts as a greenhouse taking plants from nightly lows to much higher temperatures during the day. This rapid temperature change can cause serious freeze damage or can be fatal to plants.

And our favorite, Compost as mulch, protects soil from colder temps. For more on compost and its uses, visit www.GotCompost.com

Got Compost: Mulch with Compost - protect soil during winter

Got Compost: Mulch with Compost - protect soil during winter: Brrrr…temps are lower than ever! Mulching garden beds insulates soil & plants from the cold. When we hear the word ‘mulch’ we think of a pro...

Mulch with Compost - protect soil during winter

Brrrr…temps are lower than ever! Mulching garden beds insulates soil & plants from the cold.

When we hear the word ‘mulch’ we think of a product; you know, like the multitude of bagged varieties you find on the shelves of our local garden centers. But did you know that mulch is an application? Yup, to ‘mulch’ your garden simply means you place a layer of organic or inorganic material on the surface of the soil. This is a good time of year to mulch our gardens since mulch acts as insulation for tender plants, roots and soil during cooler months. Mulch also protects soils against erosion; conserves water by slowing evaporation; controls certain plant diseases and decorates landscapes.

Mulching is one of the most widely used practices in residential landscapes. Many types of mulch used in planting beds are wood-based; made by grinding waste wood, e.g. pallets, tree branches, etc. The wood mulch is dyed to make it more attractive and to look more like bark, but has a very high carbon to nitrogen (C:N) ratio. Other types of mulch include synthetic sheeting, ground greenwaste and our favorite - compost.

Research has shown that compost when used as mulch can greatly improve soil fertility and plant growth. In studies comparing compost and ground wood used as mulch on ornamental plantings - mulching with compost increased soil organic matter, microbial activity, nutrient availability and tree growth. Increased microbial activity in soils has been linked to the suppression of many root diseases.

In comparison to wood mulch, the compost had a comparatively low C:N ratio and may act as high quality organic fertilizer as it decomposes. In contrast, high C:N mulch made from recycled wood caused nutrient deficiencies and reduced plant growth. The high carbon content of the mulch stimulated the growth of soil microbes which gobbled up the limited supply of nutrients, leaving nothing for existing plants, resulting in Nitrogen immobilization. Although the nitrogen-depleting effect of mulch lessens over time as it decomposes, this nitrogen immobilization by microbes may harm plants that haven’t established extensive root systems.

To be available to plants, nitrogen must be in an inorganic form, such as nitrate (NO3- ) or ammonium (NH4+). Plants aren’t capable of converting organic nitrogen to these inorganic forms. Fortunately, microorganisms commonly found in soil and compost convert organic nitrogen into inorganic nitrogen, a process called mineralization. Plants may then take up the nutrients released by this process.

Soils in urban and suburban landscapes often lack nutrient rich organic matter because topsoil is usually removed, disturbing soil during construction. Research results demonstrated that mulching with compost increases organic matter, microbial biomass, nutrient availability, and plant growth. The use of compost as mulch supports a healthy soil food web;  restoring ecological processes to degraded soils, while diverting valuable natural resources from landfills.

To learn more about compost and its benefits, visit www.GotCompost.com or call Harvest Blend Compost @ 805-347-9998 for helpful recorded info.

Harvest Blend Compost builds healthy soil!